We need you to be safe and courteous when using Twitter to build our personal brands… period. Twitter can be an extremely powerful tool if used correctly and it is important for all of us to remember the rules. There are three important rules when jumping into the world of tweeting.
1. Don’t Drive and Tweet
We should all know by now not to text and drive. Come on people! When Oprah says it… it’s LAW!
Yet we’ve still managed to find a loophole and (much to our grandmother’s horror) we’ve taken social networking to the streets. Although it should be common sense to not tweet and drive… sometimes you have a tweet that can’t wait. However fast you are at tweeting the consequences can be dire… like your car wrapped around a tree. This was the case for plastic surgeon, Dr. Frank Ryan, who was tweeting before his fatal car crash on Monday, August 16. This is an issue that has received a ton of attention but not much has been done to prevent these texting/tweeting related accidents.
Unfortunately, teenage drivers are not the only offenders. Texting while driving is a serious issue for ALL drivers. A recent report from Pew’s Internet and American Life Project found on Mashable… reported that 47% of adult drivers admitted to sending or reading text messages while driving. Legislation has tried to create a ban on texting by implementing fines for doing so. Yet the threat doesn’t outweigh the urgency behind getting tweets out or answering a text. So in a situation where you get the itch to tweet and just can’t wait, don’t scratch….pull over. The other drivers on the road greatly appreciate it, as would your grandmother.
2. Personal Information
There’s such a thing as TMI: too much information. I don’t’ need to know certain things… as your follower. Don’t get too graphic here so keep your personal business to yourself. Be careful when sharing information that could be potentially be embarrassing or even dangerous.
3. Give Props When Due
Tweeting can be a great way to share the love. That being said… give shout outs and retweets to others that have helped you out in the past. This will create good “Twitter Karma”… and we all want good Twitter Karma. Also when blogging about something you read, be sure to give that author the credit for their post. Don’t claim ideas as your own. A retweet is intended to give proper ownership so follow suit and give props to rightful creators.
What do you think about this? Is it a soon to be epidemic?
